NOVEMBER 18, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: RUSLYN VEAR 673-2288
RE: “AMHERST LYCEUM: DOES INCREASING OUR KNOWLEDGE INCREASE OUR HAPPINESS?”
The Amherst Town Library begins 2016 with a January series of programs for adults entitled Amherst Life: Yesterday and Today. The first program, “Amherst Lyceum: Does Increasing Knowledge Increase Happiness?” is scheduled for Tuesday, January 5th from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. in the Main Reading Room of the Library. The first “Amherst Lyceum” was opened by a lecture from Dr. Amory Gale on December 29, 1834 in Amherst, NH. And, we are bringing this “educational” institution back to Amherst in 2015! The topic of the evening was chosen from a handwritten book in the Amherst Town Library’s Local History Collection that recorded the “questions” discussed at bi-monthly meetings by the Franklin Society (a literary society that met from 1807 to 1818 in Amherst).We are re-visiting the same question that was discussed on June 8, 1808 in Amherst. “We are discussing no small matter, but how we ought to live,” Socrates as recorded by Plato.
Christopher Brooks, senior level social studies teacher at Souhegan High School (also currently Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Northeastern University and instructor at Granite State College, Southern New Hampshire University, Merrimack College, and the New Hampshire Institute of Art) will lead. He has taught a senior level seminar on ethics at SHS since 1998. To launch the evening, time will be spent tracing the history of philosophical thought on the topic and exploring the affirmative and negative responses to the question through the years. The second portion of the evening’s session will engage all participants in answering this important question referencing the Socratic and Aristotelian traditions. Students from the Souhegan High School Ethics Forum, along with Jane Martina, summer Local History Collection intern at the Amherst Town Library and current Junior majoring in History and Political Studies at Colby Sawyer College, will form a student panel sharing their own views and experiences, uniquely bringing together generations of Amherst citizens in philosophical conversation.
Christopher Brooks holds a MA in European History with emphasis on the history of ideas from the University of Maryland as well as a MEd from the University of New Hampshire in secondary education and with a concentration in philosophy of education. Brooks also studied at the Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary, Brookline, MA after receiving his BA in history from Gordon College. Brooks has taught philosophy, history, and leadership at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate level for nearly twenty years.
Please also join us for Part 2 of the Amherst Lyceum Conversations on Tuesday, January 19th when we explore the question, “Is Novel Reading Detrimental to Society” from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. in the Main Reading Room. These programsare free, open to the public, and we welcome adults and teens to this series. Registration is REQUIRED due to space limitations. You can register for these events by calling 673-2288, emailing or by visiting our website at and selecting the “Community Services” tab, then click on drop down “Sign-Up for Programs.”